Sea cucumber plant. Stimulates sexual function

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Diets and healthy eating 17.01.2018

Dear readers, in Chinese, Japanese and Korean cuisines, sea cucumber is considered a delicacy, the taste of which is so appreciated by true gourmets. It is served both fresh and as a main ingredient in soups and sauces. Today, the reader of my blog, Yulia Khoroshilova, will talk about these marine animals and why they are so popular in Asia. I give her the floor.

Hello dear readers of Irina's blog. Many gourmets are interested in a dish made from sea ​​cucumbers... This echinoderm is free of microbes and viruses, therefore it is considered effective in the treatment of pathologies of the stomach, liver and kidneys. Studies have shown that sea cucumber meat contains substances that have anti-cancer properties.

What is sea cucumber?

Holothurians, or sea cucumbers, are a class of echinoderm-type invertebrates. Far Eastern sea cucumber and cucumaria are varieties of holothurians, they live mainly in the Sea of ​​Japan, the Sea of ​​Okhotsk, and Sakhalin. Also called trepangs are all types of sea cucumbers that are eaten.

Sea cucumber, depending on the type, can be red, black, green. Such interesting name Pliny gave them, and it is connected with the fact that when touched, the body of the sea cucumber contracts and takes the form of a cucumber. Let's see what a sea cucumber looks like in the photo.

Sea cucumber. Photo

O healing power sea ​​cucumber is legendary. In Japan, it is called sea ginseng and is credited with unprecedented healing properties.

Composition and calorie content

The calorie content of sea cucumber is quite low - 100 g contains 35 kcal. By its composition, the meat of these echinoderms is considered unique, which determines the beneficial properties that it possesses. In addition, it is dietary due to low content fat - 100 g of product contains less than 1 g of fat.

Due to its high protein content, sea cucumber helps maintain muscle tone, has a beneficial effect on the skin condition, and fights infectious and inflammatory processes in the body. The tissues of the sea cucumber contain a large amount of vitamins B and C, holothurins, chlorine, phosphorus and calcium.

It is reliably known that this product is free of microbes and viruses, and its cells are sterile.

Niacin

By regularly including sea cucumber in your diet, you provide the body the required amount niacin. Vitamin B3 (PP) helps against heart disease, type 1 and 2 diabetes, and cognitive disorders.

Also, this substance is invaluable for cellular communication, gives strength to the body. According to the Linus Pauling Institute, a diet enriched with this product significantly reduces the risk of developing cancer.

Riboflavin

Sea shellfish is rich in vitamin B2, which is an essential water-soluble substance and a participant in many biochemical processes. Riboflavin acts as a transport link that delivers beneficial substances to tissues and organ systems. This is a unique vitamin of beauty and health, therefore it is recommended to include sea cucumber in the diet. Eastern healers are convinced that it contains the secret of longevity.

Iron

Everyone knows that seafood is rich in iron, which oxygenates the body and normalizes blood circulation. Therefore, the benefit of sea cucumber trepang lies in the fact that it eliminates the deficiency of a useful trace element and thereby provides strong immunity.

Beneficial features

On this moment Research on the benefits and contraindications of sea cucumber is rather limited. However, as a result of clinical trials, certain positive effects that it is capable of exerting on the body have been identified.

Trepang contains neither microbes nor viruses, therefore this product is considered useful in the treatment of diabetes, cardiovascular pathologies, and brain diseases. The product is effective remedy therapy of intestinal infections, acting as an antiviral agent.

In alternative medicine, sea cucumber is used to treat the following problems:

• upset stool in the form of constipation;
• erectile dysfunction in men;
• colds;
• periodontitis;
• hypertension;
• high cholesterol levels;
• osteoarthritis.

Representatives traditional medicine convinced that the main useful property sea ​​cucumber acts as its ability to slow down the aging process and the development of tumor-like malignant neoplasms.

Cholesterol control

Together with food, organic lipids enter the body, which are necessary to maintain human health. However, excess cholesterol is in the first place among the reasons for the development of atherosclerosis, plaque deposition in blood vessels.

According to the latest scientific research, sea cucumber helps control blood levels of these compounds. In 2002, an article was published in the journal Agricultural and Food Chemistry, which stated that sea cucumber lowers bad cholesterol and at the same time increases good cholesterol.

Gum health

Based on the results of a study carried out in 2003, scientists determined that an extract can be produced from sea cucumber, which, when added to toothpaste helps to eliminate periodontitis - bleeding gums. The experiment involved 28 people with the initial stage of gingivitis, who daily brushed their teeth with a paste with the addition of an extract from sea cucumber.

After three months, the results showed that markers of the state of the oral cavity improved markedly: bleeding decreased, gum inflammation, and an unpleasant odor disappeared. However, more research is needed to confirm this theory.

Oncological diseases

The established sterility of sea cucumber cells served as the basis for the hypothesis that this product can be effectively used for the prevention and therapy of malignant cancer.

In 2010, Pancreas magazine published Research Article, indicating that substances with anti-cancer properties have been found in sea cucumber. The study found that the key compound in the trepang triterpenoid demonstrates pronounced cytotoxicity against carcinoma of the lungs, pancreas, breast, colon, leukemia, prostate.

Many cancer patients who use honey-infused sea cucumber tincture at the same time as chemotherapy have reported a 68% reduction in malignant tumors.

In this video, you will learn about the other properties of the sea cucumber.

Cautions

Despite the fact that sea cucumber is a source of vitamins and useful macro- and microelements for the human body, it is necessary to remember about possible contraindications to its use. If you are allergic to seafood, you should stop using trepangs. This is especially true for pregnant women, whose body is most sensitive during this period.

Doctors warn that the use of sea cucumber while taking anticoagulants provokes the risk of side effects... Patients with hyperfunction thyroid gland should refrain from this iodine-rich food.

Do not forget how the sea cucumber eats: the waste of other fish, plankton. Lives a clam on seabed and filters sand together with different aquatic organisms, which can be poisonous, and all these substances are deposited in his flesh. It must be remembered that pharmacy nutritional supplements have not been tested for safety, which means that it cannot be argued that their use will not cause harm.

Sea cucumber in Asian cuisine is eaten raw, serving a dish with grated radish and soy sauce... In Russia, shellfish are boiled, canned or dried for culinary purposes. On Far East the most popular is the scraper, which is made from potatoes, onions, sea cucumbers. You can also find canned food "Cucumaria and fish skoblyanka" on supermarket shelves.

In order to improve the health of raw sea cucumbers, they are crushed and dried. The resulting mixture is mixed with honey in proportions 1: 5 and infused for 7 days. On the basis of ground sea cucumber, they make a vodka tincture, healing tea and even wine.

Since the cucumaria staple is the most popular dish, let's find out how to prepare it.

You will need the following ingredients: trepang, onions, spices, carrots, bell pepper, tomato paste... In Vladivostok, the collected trepang is boiled immediately on the shore in sea ​​water and already at home they are brought to readiness. But you can also buy it fresh.

K: Wikipedia: Articles without images (type: not specified)

The modern fauna is represented by 1150 species, divided into 6 orders, which differ from each other in the shape of the tentacles and the calcareous ring, as well as in the presence of some internal organs. There are about 100 species in Russia. The oldest fossils of sea cucumbers date back to the Silurian period.

Biology

Unlike other echinoderms, holothurians at the bottom lie "on their side", while the side carrying three rows of ambulacral legs ( trivium) is abdominal, and the side with two rows of ambulacral legs ( bivium) dorsal. In deep-sea sea cucumbers, the ambulacral legs can be greatly lengthened and used as stilts. Some species move due to peristaltic contractions of the musculature of the body wall, pushing off the ground with protruding calcareous bones.

Most sea cucumbers are black, brown or greenish in color. Body length varies from 3 cm to 1-2 meters, although one species ( Synapta maculata) reaches 5 m.

Lifestyle and nutrition

Holothurians are sedentary or crawling animals found in almost any part of the ocean - from coastal strip to deep-sea depressions; most abundant in tropical coral reefs. Most of the species are benthic, but there are also pelagic ones. Usually lie "on the side", raising the front, mouth end. Holothurians feed on plankton and organic debris extracted from bottom silt and sand, which is passed through the alimentary canal. Other species filter food from the bottom waters with sticky mucus-covered tentacles.

With severe irritation, the back of the intestine is thrown through the anus together with the water lungs, frightening or distracting the attackers; lost organs are quickly restored. In some species, Cuvier tubes containing toxins are also ejected. The sea cucumbers are hunted by starfish, gastropods, fish and crustaceans. In the water lungs of some species, fish settle - fieraspheres ( Fierasfer), sometimes pea crabs ( Pinnotheres).

Reproduction and development

The genital organ ( gonad) unpaired, in the form of a bundle of finger tubes. Fertilization of the egg and development of the embryo are external in most species. Some sea cucumbers catch eggs with tentacles and attach them to the dorsal side of the body; in rare cases, embryos develop in the body cavity.

Life expectancy is from 5 to 10 years.

Economic value

Some species of sea cucumbers, especially from the genera Stychopus and Cucumaria, are eaten under the name "trepangi". Their fishery is most developed off the coast of Japan, China, the Malay Archipelago and in the South Pacific. Holothurians are also caught in the Russian Far East.

Toxins produced by sea cucumbers are of pharmacological interest. Fishermen on the islands The Pacific use poisonous cuvier tubes of some species for fishing.

see also

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Notes (edit)

Literature

• Dolmatov I. Yu., Mashanov V.S. Regeneration in sea cucumbers. - Vladivostok: Dalnauka, 2007 .-- 208 p.
• Kalinin V.I., Levin V.S., Stonik V.A. Chemical morphology: triterpene glycosides of sea cucumbers (Holothurioidea, Echinodermata). - Vladivostok: Dalnauka, 1994 .-- 284 p.

Excerpt from Holothurians

"Sonya?" she thought, looking at the sleeping, curled up kitty with her huge braid. “No, where is she! She is virtuous. She fell in love with Nikolenka and doesn't want to know anything else. Mom, she doesn't understand either. It's amazing how smart I am and how ... she is cute, "she continued, speaking to herself in the third person and imagining that this is being said about her by some very smart, the most intelligent and good man… “Everything, everything in her,” the man continued, “is unusually clever, sweet and then good, unusually good, dexterous — she swims, rides well, and her voice! You can say an amazing voice! " She sang her favorite musical phrase from the Cherubin's opera, threw herself on the bed, laughed at the joyful thought that she would fall asleep, shouted to Dunyasha to put out the candle, and before Dunyasha had time to leave the room, she had already moved to another, even more happy world dreams, where everything was as easy and beautiful as in reality, but it was only even better, because it was different.

The next day the Countess, having invited Boris to her place, talked to him, and from that day on he stopped visiting the Rostovs.

On the 31st of December, on the eve of the new year 1810, le reveillon [night supper], there was a ball at the Catherine's grandee. The ball was supposed to be a diplomatic corps and a sovereign.
On the Promenade des Anglais, it shone with countless illumination lights famous house nobles. At the lighted entrance with a red cloth stood the police, and not only gendarmes, but a police chief at the entrance and dozens of police officers. The carriages drove off, and new ones arrived, with red footmen and footmen in feathers on their hats. Men in uniforms, stars and ribbons emerged from the carriages; ladies in satin and ermines cautiously walked down the noisy steps, and hurriedly and soundlessly walked along the cloth of the entrance.
Almost every time a new carriage arrived, there was a whisper in the crowd and hats were taken off.
- Sovereign? ... No, minister ... prince ... envoy ... Can't you see the feathers? ... - said from the crowd. One of the crowd, dressed better than the others, seemed to know everyone, and called by name the noblest nobles of that time.
Already one third of the guests had arrived at this ball, and the Rostovs, who were supposed to be at this ball, were still hastily preparing for dressing.
There was a lot of talk and preparations for this ball in the Rostov family, many fears that the invitation would not be received, the dress would not be ready, and everything would not be arranged as it was needed.
Together with the Rostovs went to the ball Marya Ignatievna Peronskaya, a friend and relative of the countess, a thin and yellow maid of honor of the old court, leading the provincial Rostovs in the highest Petersburg society.
At 10 o'clock in the evening the Rostovs were supposed to call for the maid of honor at the Tauride Garden; and meanwhile it was already five minutes to ten, and the young ladies were not yet dressed.
Natasha went to the first big ball in her life. She got up that day at 8 o'clock in the morning and was in feverish anxiety and activity all day. All her forces, from the very morning, were directed to ensure that they all: she, mother, Sonya were dressed as best as possible. Sonya and the Countess vouched completely to her. The decanter was supposed to have a masaka velvet dress, they are wearing two white smoky dresses on pink, silk covers with roses in a corsage. The hair had to be combed a la grecque [in Greek].
Everything essential had already been done: the legs, arms, neck, ears were already especially carefully, according to the ballroom, washed, perfumed and powdered; they were already shod with silk fishnet stockings and white satin shoes with bows; the hairstyles were almost finished. Sonya finished dressing, and so did the Countess; but Natasha, who was busy with everyone, fell behind. She was still sitting in front of the mirror in a dressing-gown draped over her slender shoulders. Sonya, already dressed, stood in the middle of the room, pressing her small finger painfully, pinning the last ribbon squealing under the pin.
“Not so, not so, Sonya,” said Natasha, turning her head from her hair and clutching at the hair with her hands, which the maid who held them did not have time to let go. - Not so bow, come here. - Sonya sat down. Natasha split the tape differently.
“Excuse me, young lady, you can't do that,” said the maid, who was holding Natasha's hair.
- Oh, my God, well after! That's it, Sonya.
- Are you soon? - the countess's voice was heard, - it's ten now.
- Now. - Are you ready, Mom?
- Just pin it.
- Don't do it without me, - Natasha shouted: - you won't be able to!
- Yes, ten.
It was decided to be at the ball at half past ten, while Natasha still had to get dressed and stop by the Tauride Garden.
Having finished her hair, Natasha, in a short skirt, from under which one could see ballroom shoes, and in her mother's blouse, ran up to Sonya, examined her, and then ran to her mother. Turning her head, she pinned the current, and, barely having time to kiss her grey hair, again ran to the girls who were hemming her skirts.
The matter was behind Natasha's skirt, which was too long; it was hemmed by two girls, hastily biting off the thread. The third, with pins in her lips and teeth, ran from the countess to Sonya; the fourth held the entire smoky dress on her hand held high.
- Mavrusha, rather, my dear!
- Give me a thimble from there, young lady.
- Is it soon, finally? - said the count, entering from behind the door. - Here's a perfume. Peronskaya was already tired of waiting.
- Done, young lady, - said the maid, lifting the hemmed smoky dress with two fingers and blowing and shaking something, expressing with this gesture the consciousness of the airiness and purity of what she was holding.
Natasha began to put on a dress.

Sea cucumbers belong to invertebrates such as echinoderms, in general, to molluscs. Currently existing 1150 species, included in 6 orders, differ in appearance, color, shape of tentacles and rings, as well as internal structure... The closest relatives - sea ​​urchins and stars. In Russia, there are about 100 species of these worm-like animals, the most popular of which are the Far Eastern sea cucumber and Japanese sea cucumber (cucumaria), from which delicious and healthy dishes are prepared.

The appearance of the sea cucumber sea cucumber

Sea cucumber sea cucumber - a unique inhabitant underwater world... It looks like a large hulking caterpillar and a huge worm. The soft body of these invertebrates, depending on the species, can be rough or smooth, it can be covered with long or short outgrowths. Holothurians are colored black, brown, green, gray or red. Sea cucumbers, depending on the species, also differ in their sizes, which vary from 0.5 centimeters to 5 meters, which makes them attractive to sea hunters.

The sea cucumber, the photo of which is presented, is slow and crawls slowly, alternately stretching and contracting. In their usual state, the cucumbers lie on one side, which makes them much easier to catch.

The healing properties of sea cucumbers

The sterility of meat, the complete absence of viruses or diseases, the huge content of iodine - all this is a sea cucumber. The medicinal properties of the product make it possible to use it as a natural remedy for quick recovery after illness or surgery. Eastern doctors prescribe delicious trepan meat to accelerate tissue regeneration, stimulate the heart muscle, lower blood pressure, normalization of metabolic processes and even getting rid of tachycardia and bradycardia.

Another beneficial property of the sea cucumber is the healing effect on the joints, which is used in the treatment of arthritis. Substances found in seafood can relieve pain and reduce joint stiffness.

Trepang extract obtained by unique recipe oriental medicine. Extract from sea cucumber has exactly such beneficial medicinal properties like its fresh meat. It is especially recommended to be used as a dietary supplement for the elderly and those who suffer from chronic diseases. Chinese doctors claim that the extract saturates the body with a complex essential elements, improves immunity, cardiovascular and nervous systems, prolongs life. The tissues of the cucumber sea cucumber contain vitamins of groups C and B, calcium, phosphorus, iodine, chlorine and amino sugar. Toxic substances holothurines are widely used in pharmacology.

Thus, the delicious meat of marine invertebrates is an excellent raw material for the production of unique medicinal extracts, as well as an extract, on the basis of which they make medications... And they also cook from sea cucumber delicious salads and use it as an independent dish (fried, stewed or canned).

The use of sea cucumber for food

Some types of sea cucumber, which are also called trepangs, are eaten and considered real delicacies. The invertebrate fishery is carried out off the coast of China, Japan and in the south of the Pacific Ocean, in Russia - in the Far East.

Sea cucumber (you can choose the recipe to your liking) can be fried, dried, canned. It's incredibly delicious and useful product... One "but": it becomes tasty only when cooked with any aromatic products, since they perfectly absorb odors. The Japanese eat it raw, believing that it has a general strengthening and health-improving effect. Indeed, the sea animal contains vitamins, useful amino acids and trace elements.

Fresh trepang appetizer

Thoroughly peeled and washed sea cucumber is cut into small pieces, poured with soy sauce and seasoned with garlic to taste. Marinate for 5 minutes. One large trepang is enough for a whole group of six people.

Boiled Trepang Chinese Recipes

• Trepang (sea cucumber), the photo of which is presented below, is boiled in boiling water. For ready-made food, they are cut into slices and poured with carrot sauce.
• From sea cucumber it turns out very tasty soup if you add fragrant Chinese mushrooms with young bamboo shoots to it. This is a super diet food.
• Dried sea cucumbers are pre-soaked for several hours and then boiled and used in salads or snacks.

Sea cucumber with vegetables recipe

Soak two boiled-frozen cucumbers in cold water for 20 minutes.

Rinse thoroughly and cut into 1/2-inch slices.

Fill a deep saucepan halfway with water and place over medium heat.

Peel 100 g ginger root, cut into cubes and put in a saucepan.

When the water boils, place the sea cucumbers there for 2 minutes, then drain in a colander and place in a dry container.

Peel and cut 2 carrots and 2 onions into thin strips, also chop 200-300 g of cabbage.

Separately dice 200 g smoked brisket.

Put a frying pan with 3 tablespoons over medium heat. butter and put the cabbage, simmer for 15 minutes.

Add a little water so as not to burn, pepper and add smoked brisket, simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes.

In another pan, fry in 3 tablespoons. butter onion and carrot, add finely chopped green onions and parsley (3 feathers each), sea cucumbers, simmer for 5 minutes.

When the cabbage is translucent, add the mixture from the second skillet, sprinkle with sesame seeds and cover. Stirring occasionally, cook the dish over low heat for 10-15 minutes. Salt a little, let it brew for 5-7 minutes. Served hot with hot sauces.

Sea cucumber caviar recipe

Boiled sea cucumber is ground in a large meat grinder.

Onions are chopped, carrots are rubbed.

Sea cucumber with vegetables is stewed for 15 minutes in a pan in oil, you can add fresh tomatoes or pasta. Salt and pepper to taste. You can season with soy sauce.

"Skoblyanka" from trepang

Salt is fried in a pan, 100 g of vegetable oil is added and 2 onions, cut into rings, are fried.

Boiled trepang is cut across into rings and added to the pan with onions.

After a couple of minutes, two cut into circles are placed there. large tomatoes or two tablespoons of tomato paste, salt, black pepper.

Let it boil for a few minutes, turn off the heat, cool. Squeeze out a clove of garlic and let it brew under the lid.

Often on sale you can find dried trepangs, covered with black coal dust - this protects them from damage. To prepare a dish from such a mollusk, it must first be kept in cold water for two days, periodically replacing the water. But the trepang will increase in volume several times. Before subjecting it to heat treatment, the abdomen is cut and cleaned of the viscera.

Boil trepang for 2-3 hours until soft. And then you can use it to make hodgepodge, cabbage soup, all kinds of salads, snacks, vegetable casseroles and other dishes. Whatever you choose as a culinary experiment, in any case, you will be satisfied!

"Sea cucumber" - unusual inhabitant underwater world. It is somewhat similar to a worm, or rather, to a large thick caterpillar. This "vegetable" has a very specific way of protecting itself from enemies - it sprays its internal organs.

These invertebrates can be found in almost all seas except the Caspian and Baltic. They live both in coastal zones and in deep-sea depressions... Coral reefs serve as their main home.

Holothurians, depending on the species, have different sizes, ranging from 0.5 centimeters to 5 meters (for example, the spotted synapt). In addition to being the longest among the other species, it is also the fastest.

Most sea cucumbers vary in length from 3 centimeters to 1–2 meters. They are incredible in color, ranging from brown speckled to bright yellow with orange and blue stripes.

Outwardly, "sea cucumbers" are more like large and clumsy caterpillars. Their soft body can be smooth, rough, or covered with various outgrowths.

Outgrowths on the body of the sea cucumber

On one side of the body, they have a mouth, and on the other, an anus, which also serves as a "sea cucumber" for ... ... breathing! This was the first time I heard that such a thing is possible. With the help of it, the sea cucumbers draws in water saturated with oxygen. From there, water enters the water lungs, which are located near the anus.

Tentacles

Her mouth is surrounded by tentacles with which she puts food in her mouth. During its leisurely movement, the sea cucumber touches the sand, silt or corals with its tentacles and captures from them the smallest particles of organic matter and grains of sand with bacteria. Because of this “sandy diet,” the sea cucumber constantly empties its intestines. In addition to organics and bacteria, it feeds on plankton.

These invertebrates move slowly, contracting and stretching their body. Some species are able to swim in worm-like movements.

Holothuria almost always lies on one side of the body - the trivium. If you turn it over, it will definitely return to its original position.

These "algae" are also sea cucumbers

Reproduction in "sea cucumbers" occurs sexually. Females lay eggs directly in the water, and the male fertilizes them. Some types are caring parents... For example, the red sea cucumber, which lives off the coast of California, bears its eggs on its back under the calcareous plates. When ripe, the larvae break through the mother's skin and start free swimming.

The larvae go through 3 stages of development: 1 - dipleurula, 2 - auricularia and the final stage - dololaria. During the first month of their life, they feed on unicellular algae.

Holothuria is a unique animal. She can calmly say goodbye to a part of her body. With strong irritation or touch, it throws out its insides through the anus: the back of the intestine, water lungs and Cuvier's bundles - organs containing toxins. Scientifically, this phenomenon is called evisceration.

"Shooting" weapon

The regeneration of the lost organs occurs rather quickly and is completely completed in 6-8 weeks. In addition, these animals can reproduce their body from half or even one quarter of what remains of it. True, they no longer grow to their original size.

And finally. The sea cucumber is a walking home for the tiny "pearl" fish Carapus affinis, which lives in its anus. Here the fish is always protected and supplied with a supply of fresh water. It's probably funny to watch when the fish sticks its head out of this hole.

Different species live on different depths... Some live near the coast. Others are found in deep sea trenches. Several species of sea cucumbers are known to inhabit the bottom of the Mariana Trench. Some scientists believe that it was the sea cucumber, and not the fish, that saw the first expedition to the bottom of the Challenger Abyss.

Modern scientific classification divides 6 orders of sea cucumbers with a total of 1,150 species. They appeared on Earth about 450 million years ago.

Description of sea cucumbers

Sea cucumbers got their name because of external similarity with fruits of a cucumber. They have a soft cylindrical body, elongated in length. But the shape of the body can vary from almost perfect spherical (for example, sea ​​apples — Paracucumaria and Pseudocolochirus), to serpentine (for example, detachment Apodida).

The average body length ranges from 10 to 30 cm. large species grow up to 3 meters in length.

The mouth is located at one end of the animal and is rather complex. It is surrounded by 10-30 tentacles capable of being drawn inward. These tentacles can be of the most varied shapes - from simple tubular legs to complexly branched and tree-like ones. The shape of the tentacles depends on the food consumed. In species that hunt planktonic animals, they have a tree-like shape, the main task of which is to maximize the volume of filtered water. Species feeding on the upper bottom substrate have a branched tentacle structure. And species that live on a sandy or muddy bottom have simple short tentacles in the form of blades that make it easier for them to dig in the ground.

The so-called ambulacral legs grow along the entire length of the body. They perform several essential functions... First, they perform a tactile function. Secondly, they participate in the respiration of the sea cucumber, transferring fresh water to the inside of the animal. Thirdly, helping the animal to move along the bottom. In some species (mostly deep-sea ones), ambulacral legs are used as simple legs. But most often the muscles of the body are responsible for the movement.

Behavior and lifestyle

Sea cucumbers are found in all oceans in a large number populating the seabed. Gathering in large groups, they are on a constant journey in search of food. At a depth of over 9 km. they make up 90% of the total mass of all fauna (meaning macrofauna - visible to humans with the naked eye). Holothurians have adapted better than other animals to survival at extreme depths, and even at a 5 km depth, their number and species diversity as rich as near the surface. Only porpoises can compete with sea cucumbers for the title of the most unpretentious deep-sea animal.

The bodies of some species of deep sea cucumber (for example, Enypniastes eximia and Paelopatides confundens) consist of a special gelatinous fabric with unique properties that provide buoyancy to the animal. This makes it possible to swim decently in the water and move to new habitats. The only "true" pelagic (lives in the water column, not at the bottom) sea cucumber is a species Pelagothuria natatrix. Other "floating" sea cucumbers move in this way only from time to time. They are often confused with, but the color of sea cucumbers is brighter, mostly red in color.

There are also types of sea cucumbers (in the squad Elasipodida) with the density of the body is almost the same as the density of water. Having pushed off from the bottom, they are able to soar in the water column for a distance of more than 1 km. Such sea cucumbers have specific swimming appendages resembling an umbrella or a petal, by rotating which the animal can maneuver while swimming.

But most sea cucumbers are still exclusively benthic and sedentary animals. Crawling along the bottom they pick up the decaying organic matter and plankton. They also dig the bottom soil with the help of mouth tentacles and legs, sometimes completely buried in it. By loosening the bottom and destroying detritus (undecomposed particles of animals and plants), they play a very important and useful role in the marine ecosystem. In some regions of the world's oceans, the density of sea cucumbers reaches 40 individuals per 1 m². In one year, such a group of sea cucumbers can process up to 20 kg. soil.

Pushing on the bottom, sea cucumbers do not show any territorial behavior, taking up free space and moving forward when there is no food left in their area. Only during the breeding season, they transmit signals to their relatives with the help of special hormones, completely ignoring them the rest of the time.

Symbiosis with other animals

Some animals can live in symbiosis and commensalism (a way of coexistence of two organisms, in which one imposes on the other regulation with external environment) with sea cucumbers. Most often, shrimp can be found along with holothurians. There is even a species of shrimp that lives with echinoderms on their body all their lives, for example, the species Periclimenes imperator.

Separately, it is worth highlighting the small fish of the family Carapidae, the so-called pearl fish. These small fish with an elongated body can live at a depth of up to 2,000 m. An interesting strategy for their survival is the ability of fry to literally hide inside the body of a sea cucumber, getting into it through the anus or mouth. There it grows, hiding from predators and at the same time finding food in the remnants of food coming out of the sea cucumber. When the fish grows up, it leaves its owner forever.

Many marine worms and crabs also find refuge inside sea cucumbers. Some types of sea cucumbers (for example, Actinopyga) in the process of evolution acquired special teeth in the anus, which do not allow other animals to penetrate into them.

Methods of protection and predators

Sea cucumbers are very easy prey. They cannot escape quickly and are found in great abundance everywhere. But only highly specialized predators hunt specifically for sea cucumbers. The body of sea cucumbers contains many toxins (in particular holothurin), due to which they are ignored by most marine life... Purposefully hunting for holothurians is conducted only by large mollusks of the family Tonnidae- so called Barrels that paralyze them with a powerful poison before sucking out their soft tissue.

Some species sea ​​fish can eat sea cucumbers if they cannot get other food. The sea cucumbers have been observed to be eaten by trigger fish and tetraodons, as well as some species of crabs, hermit crabs and lobsters.

To protect themselves, sea cucumbers have developed special tool protections that are not found in other animals. When a danger arises, they inject into the water through the anus the poisonous part of the intestine - the cuvier tubes. Normally, Cuvier tubes are long filaments inside an animal that swell greatly when they are submerged in water. Thus, sea cucumbers try to disorient and confuse predators. Lost pipes, depending on the type, are restored within 1-5 weeks.

The spraying of cuvier tubes is accompanied by the release of the toxic poison of holothurin into the water. This poison forms a thick foamy mass that kills other animals that are nearby.

Meaning for a person

There are many commercially important species sea ​​cucumber, which is used in cooking and traditional Asian medicine. Pharmaceutical companies produce various preparations based on dried golden sea cucumber - gamata. Oils, creams, cosmetics, and medicines are made from it.

In Asia (mainly in China), a wide variety of dishes are prepared from sea cucumber - from salads to hot dishes. Most of the sea cucumbers come from artificial reservoirs, where they have been specially grown for sale since the 1980s. It is noteworthy that in the Chinese market, sea cucumber grown or caught in Alaska is in demand. It has a higher nutritional value and size.

Artificial breeding of sea cucumbers ensures the safety of the state of the populations, but the markets still offer sea cucumbers caught in nature, in particular on coral reefs... In the recent past, such fisheries have greatly reduced some species. "Wild" cucumbers are more expensive - they are larger and are considered more delicious. To combat illegal fishing, the government has set a price limit per kilogram of meat for all sea cucumbers sold. This did not profitable sale expensive types of sea cucumbers.